Cashier and teller&#39;s protective window



April 18, 1961 K. BREUNING CASHIER AND TELLERS PROTECTIVE wmnow Filed Feb. 16, 1959 0 mm! 7 N EU Vm B H O K 11% M MJM ATTORNEYS) United States Patent 2,980,040 CASHIER AND TELLERS PROTECTIVE WINDOW Karl Breuning, 47--14 Fresh Meadow Lane, Flushing, NY.

Filed Feb. 16, 1959, Ser. No. 793,555

3 Claims. (Cl. 1091) This in ention relates to a protective closure device for closing off the shelf opening in a partition between a cashier or bank teller and a customer.

Several such protective closures have been devised previously but these prior art closures are complex in construction and require the rebuilding of the entire partition between the cashier or teller and the customer.

Among the objects of the present invention is to provide a protective closure for the opening in a tellers or cashiers window which is simple in construction and at' the same time effective in closing-off any opening between the cashier or teller and the customer.

The objects of the invention are obtained ,by providing the opening in the partition containing the shelf with a semicylindrical closure which is pivotally mounted to rotate on an axis adjacent the region where the shelf is attached to the partition. In the construction or installation of the device of the invention, additional space is required between the opening of the partition and the sides of the shelf to accommodate the ends of the semicylindrical closure but the shelf and opening (without the closure) are otherwise very similar to conventional devices of this type.

The partition and the closure device may be made of laminated or bullet proof glass or of fairly thick transparent plastic material such as polymethyl methacrylate sold under the trade name of Lucite or Plexiglas, for example. Such plastic materials are tough and flexible and therefore capable of shielding one from the discharge of ordinary firearms.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view, partly cut away, of the device of the invention from the cashiers side.

Fig. 2 is a side cross sectional view of the device with the closure device closing both sides of the shelf.

Fig. 3 is a side view of the device with the closure means open on the customers side.

Fig. 4 is a side view similar to Fig. 3 but with the closure means open on the cashiers side.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail view taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 1.

In the device shown the panel represents the upper portion of the partition between the cashiers or tellers cage and the customer. This panel 10 contains the communicatingopening defined by the upper edge 11, the sides 12 and the shelf 13 of the partition. In the device of this invention, however, the shelf 13 does not extend quite to the sides 12 of the opening (see Fig. 2).

The protective closure device 20 comprises the semicircular ends 21 and 22, the semicylindrical body portion 23 and a handle portion 24. The ends 21 and 22 contain bearing openings 25 and 26 at their center of curvature and suitable axles 27 and 28 are provided for pivotally connecting the ends 21 and 22 to rotate on an axis at the region where the shelf 13 is attached to the panel or partition 10. It is desirable that the shelf extend toward both cashier and the customer although it is not essential that the shelf extend all the way to the inner edge of the semicylindrical closure. In the device shown the axles 27 and 28 extend into the shelf 13 but these axles could just as well extend into the sides 12 of the opening in the panel 10 or into both the panel and the shelf. The radius of the semi-circular closure is such as to fillthe-opening, that is the semicylindrical portion 23 extends up to the top edge 11 of the opening in panel 10.

It will be noted that as the closure 20 is rotated, with the aid of the handle 24, located on the cashiers side, the cylindrical portion 23 always extends up to the top edge 11 and when one lower edge 40 of the cylindrical portion 23 extends above the shelf 13 on one side the opposite edge 41 is always below the shelf 13 on the opposite side.

The angle through which the closure device can be rotated is limited by the lower portion of the panel or partition 10. It is desirable to cut diagonal grooves 32 and 33 in panel 10 in the region below the edges of sides 12 to provide a stopping surface (rather than an edge) on the panel 10 for the closure 20. A very satisfactory method of attaching the shelf 13 to panel 10 and providing stops for the closure member 20 is shown in detail in Fig. 5. According to this structure the shelf 13 is attached to the bracket 30 by cementing, for example. The shelf 13 and bracket 30 are then attached to the edge 11' of the opening in panel 10 by means of screws 31, for example.

It will be seen that the device of the invention provides a very simple means for protecting cashiers and tellers against the threat of arms oracid of would-be hold-up characters and that the device requires a minimum change in the structure or appearance of the tellers and cashiers partitions. Where necessary, two way microphones and audio amplifiers may be installed on both sides of the partition. Because of the simplicity of the device, the transparency of the parts and the similarity to existing cashiers windows, very little, if any, of the friendly atmosphere that banks like to cultivate with their customers is lost by use of the device. It is obvious that the device may be made for any desired size of opening and that both the customer and the cashier or teller have substantially the full space of the opening and the entire shelf 13 available when the closure is pivoted away from their sides.

The features and principles underlying the invention described above in connection with specific exemplifications will suggest to those skilled in the arts many other modifications thereof. It is accordingly desired that the appended claims shall not be limited to any specific feature or details thereof. 4

I claim:

1. In a cashiers window of the type comprising a front partition separating a customer from the cashier with a rectangular opening containing a shelf therein, the improved construction comprising a front partition having a substantially rectangular opening therein with a substantially horizontal lower edge, shelf means mounted along the lower horizontal edge of said rectangular opening, said shelf means including a rectangular shelf positioned so that the two ends extend approximately equally in front and in back of the partition and having a width such that the side edges thereof extend along a line slightly inside of the sides of said opening, a protective closure comprising a continuous semi-cylindrical outer portion open along the axial side, end portions of substantially semicircular shape closing the end portions of said semicylindrical outer portion, said end portions deviating from the strictly semicircular shape at the center thereof by an amount sufficient to provide an axial opening with a rugged circumferential portion centered on the radius of the semicircle, the length of said rectangular shelf being approximately equal to the Patented Apr. 18, 1961.

inside diameter of the semicylindrical closure and the outside radius of said semicylindrical closure being approximately equal to the height of said rectangular opening, and means for pivotally mounting the said closure through the axial openings in the end portions in the spaces between the shelf and the two sides of the rectangular opening.

2. A cashiers window as claimed in claim 1 wherein said partition contains diagonal grooves extending be-. low the space between the shelf and the sides of the rectangular opening to provide surface stops for the said semi-cylindrical closure is made of transparentmaterial.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED' STATES PATENTS Hecht June 8, 1920 Willerns Nov. 1, 1932 

